No Contaron Con Mi Astucia (They Didn't Count on My Intellect)

One of Ecuador's main attractions is alpaca! I say that half jokingly, but, at the same time, it's true (I'll explain later). You can go to almost any part of Ecuador and find an artisan market full of gifts made by indigenous ecuadorians. In the selva, the artisan crafts consist mostly of decorative jewelry (bracelets, necklaces, etc.). Now, where the real goods are, at least for most tourists, seems to be in the mountain regions.  The majority of artisan goods that come from the sierra are mass produced by the Otavaleños,  Quichuas, named so because they're originally from Otavalo. The manufacturing and distributing of their products is a huge enterprise, not only in Ecuador, but all over the world.  Alpaca, that seems to be the unifying theme of all of the markets where the Otavlaeño artisan goods are found. If you go to the Mercado Artesanal (Artisan Market) of Quito, you will find nearly a hundred little stands, all selling pretty much the same things. You've got sweaters, hats, gloves, scarfs, pants, and so on, all available in a variety of colored alpaca fur. You can even get a sweater made of alpaca with alpacas on it! It's funny because, while it is cold in many parts of Ecuador, especially in the mountains, this gear would be suitable for the Arctic Circle!  Fortunately, not everything is made of alpaca, and you can find some decent stuff, if you have time to look. With everything being the same in every stand (not a good marketing strategy from what I remember in my studies), I arrive at my next point, bargaining. The time concern doesn't only depend on looking. Another very important part of going to an Otavaleño market, apart from sifting past the alpaca, is bargaining. It's called "regatear", or, as my friend Mónica likes to call it, "pelear" (fight), and it is not only accepted, but expected.  Why am I telling you about all of this? Well, this past week I spent a couple of days at the market, buying gifts to take back to the states, and I got some good stuff! As el Chapulín Colorodo, from a hugely famous Mexican comedy show, would say, "No contaron con mi astucia," (they didn't count on my intellect). I went to the market with my secret weapon, Mónica!  Mónica not only has a couple of friends at the Mercado Artesanal, she also loves to pelear. With her help, I made out like a bandit, and I only bought a couple of alpaca things! Now I've got all my gifts ready to go, they're currently passing from a conveyor belt to the airplane. Let's hope American doesn't lose my bag!